Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for raising this Commencement matter. I am taking it on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly. As the Senator will be aware, publication of the assisted human reproduction legislation is a priority for the Department and the Government and a commitment to enact the legislation is included in the programme for Government, Our Shared Future. The Department continues to engage intensively with the Office of the Attorney General in order to finalise this complex legislation. I was really struck by something which the Senator hit on really well, namely, that this is a very emotional issue we are talking about. Sometimes when one is reading out words or articulating something, perhaps you do not understand, unless you have been there yourself, the real complexities and the emotional strain this puts not only on the lady herself but on the relationship, the household and the wider family community who understand where the couple is at.

Another programme for Government commitment is the introduction of the model of care for infertility, which was developed by officials in the Department in conjunction with the HSE's national women and infants health programme. This model of care will ensure infertility issues affecting both men and women will be addressed through the public health system at the lowest level of clinical intervention necessary as part of the full range of services available in obstetrics and gynaecology.

The model of care comprises three stages, starting in primary care with GPs and extending into secondary care, in the form of regional fertility hubs and then, where necessary, tertiary care such as IVF and other AHR treatments, with patients being referred onwards through structured pathways. Phase 1 of the roll-out of the model of care has involved the establishment, at secondary care level, of regional fertility hubs in maternity networks, in order to facilitate the management of a significant proportion of patients presenting with infertility issues without the need to undergo invasive IVF or other advanced AHR treatments. Funding of €2 million was provided to the HSE to commence phase 1 of the roll-out in 2020 and this was utilised specifically in respect of the development of the first four regional fertility hubs, namely, Cork University Maternity Hospital, the Rotunda Hospital, the National Maternity Hospital and the Coombe Women and Infants University Hospital.Additional funding was made available in budget 2021 to enable the continuation of phase 1 this year, including through the setting up of the final two regional fertility hubs, one located in the Saolta University Health Care Group at University Hospital Galway and one within the University Limerick Hospitals Group at Nenagh General Hospital. Work is well under way on the recruitment, refurbishment and the equipping of these two hubs. Therefore, the completion of phase 1 of the roll-out of the model of care will result in fully operational regional fertility hubs in each of the six hospital groups across the country.

Phase 2 of the roll-out will see the introduction of tertiary infertility services, including IVF in the public health system, but will not commence until such time as infertility services at secondary level have been developed across the country. Required resources have been allocated and the assisted human reproduction, AHR, legislation commenced. Overall, the underlying aim of the policy to provide a model of funding for AHR within the broader AHR regulatory framework is to improve accessibility to AHR treatments while at the same time embedding safe and appropriate clinical practice and ensuring cost effective use of public resources.

I hope that goes some way to answering the Senator's question. It is welcome we have a balance of provision in terms of geography with Nenagh General Hospital and University Hospital Galway included as fertility hubs. We have a more inclusive addressing of this issue.